:''The term "sesame candy" may also refer to sesame halva or ufuta.'' Sesame seed candy is a confection of sesame seeds and

sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose Glucose is a sugar with the Chemical formula#Molecular formula, molecul ...

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of pl ...

pressed into a ball, bar or wafer. It is popular across East Africa,

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

South Asia South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia that is defined in both geographical and Ethnicity, ethnic-Culture, cultural terms. South Asia, with a population of 2.04 billion, contains a quarter (25%) of the world's populatio ...

, and

East Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...

, as well as in some European countries. And as far as Australia The texture may vary from chewy to crisp. It may also be called sesame (seed) candy/bar/crunch; sesame seed cake may refer to the confection or to a leavened cake or cookie incorporating sesame.

By location

Ancient Greece and Rome

Similar foods are documented in Ancient Greek cuisine: ''itrion'' (ἴτριον) was a thin biscuit/cake made with sesame seeds and honey, the Cretan ''koptoplakous'' (κοπτοπλακοῦς) or ''gastris'' (γάστρις) was a layer of ground nuts sandwiched between two layers of sesame crushed with honey.

Herodotus Herodotus (; BC) was a Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus (now Bodrum, Turkey), under Persian control in the 5th century BC, and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria, Italy. He wrote the '' Histori ...

also mentions "sweet cakes of sesame and honey", but with no detail. The ''Kopte sesamis'' (κοπτὴ σησαμίς), or simply κοπτὴ, was a cake made from pounded sesame, only the ingredients are known and not the recipe, but historians think that it may was similar to the modern Greek sesame seed sweet (pasteli) which is made from the same ingredients.

Greece and Cyprus

In modern Greece and Cyprus, sesame seed candy is still baked and called pasteli (παστέλι). It is generally a flat, oblong bar made with honey and often including nuts. Though the modern name ''pasteli'' is of Italian origin. On the island of

Rhodes Rhodes (; ) is the largest of the Dodecanese islands of Greece and is their historical capital; it is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, ninth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Administratively, the island forms a separ ...

, a similar candy exists and is called melekouni (μελεκούνι).

Indian subcontinent

Various kinds of sesame candy are found in the cuisine of the Indian subcontinent. Sesame Candy in the forms of Rewri/Revri ("candy coated with sesame seeds"), as well as Gajak ("sugar or jaggery sweet with sesame seeds"), is widely eaten in northern India and Pakistan; the cities of

Lucknow Lucknow () is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the largest city of the List of state and union territory capitals in India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is the administrative headquarters of the epon ...

and Chakwal are very famous for this product. The Assamese ''tilor laru'' is an Assamese breakfast snack. The Maharashtran ''tilgul ladoo'' is a ball of sesame and sugar flavored with

peanut The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), goober pea, pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics by small and large ...

s and cardamom and associated with the festival of Makar Sankranti.

China

Sesame seed candy is called ''Hei Zhima Su'' (lit. Black Sesame Crisp) in Chinese. Traditionally it is made with nuts (including peanuts, almonds, and walnuts) or dried fruits (including raisins and dried goji). Traditionally the sweet is made primarily with black sesame.

Vietnam

A variety of sesame seed candy containing peanuts, alongside sesame seeds and granulated sugar, is produced in the central Quảng Ngãi province where it is referred to as Kẹo Gương. It is believed to have been produced in the region for more than 400 years.

Iran

In Iran's Mazandaran Province, it is a popular local candy made in various festivities such as

Nowruz Nowruz (, , () , () , () , () , Kurdish language, Kurdish: () , () , () , () , , , , () , , ) is the Iranian or Persian New Year. Historically, it has been observed by Iranian peoples, but is now celebrated by many ...

and Yalda night. It is usually made as thin layers and may contain walnuts, almonds, pistachios or other nuts.

Poland

Sezamki are a traditional Polish sesame seed candy made from toasted sesame seeds bound together with caramelized sugar or honey. These thin, crunchy bars are a beloved sweet treat in Poland, often enjoyed as a quick snack or dessert.

Australia

"Sesame snaps" a small crunchy rectangle, made with sugar a popular children's school snack in Australia.

Gallery

File:Ajonjoli-HappyCocoBites dulces tipicos de puerto rico.jpg, Puerto Rican sesame seed candy File:Kefalonian pasteli.jpg, A Greek pasteli File:Μελεκούνι.jpg, A Greek melekouni File:Gur Rewari (a kind of Gajak) from Lucknow, a traditional Indian snack made with Jaggery and crunchy sesame seeds in the form of crispy bars.jpg, Gur Rewari ("Gud-til gajak") from

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

File:2024 Sezamki (2).jpg, Thin wide ''sezamki'' from

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

Notes

{{Nut confections Sugar confectionery Ancient Greek cuisine Chinese confectionery Chinese desserts Greek desserts Indian confectionery Iranian desserts Israeli confectionery Seed candy Turkish desserts Honey dishes